Amend the bill, as and if amended, by striking all after the
title and inserting:

/ Whereas, the General Assembly finds that
the sacrifices of those who serve in the armed services of this
great nation deserve our greatest respect, and that we have an
obligation to demonstrate our appreciation to these service
members and their families in tangible ways; and

Whereas, the General Assembly takes great pride in being home to
many military installations, and is greatly appreciative of the
tremendously positive impact of these installations and the
service members and their families on the economy of the
Palmetto State; and

Whereas, the South Carolina General Assembly finds that
comprehensive legislation to enhance many quality of life issues
for members of the armed forces and their families is very
appropriate to demonstrate its appreciation for the sacrifices
of members of the armed forces and their families and to
demonstrate its appreciation for the enormously positive impact
of military installations on the Palmetto State. Now, therefore,

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South
Carolina:

PART I

Military Family Quality of Life
Enhancement Act of 2014

SECTION 1. This act may
be known and must be cited as the "Military Family Quality
of Life Enhancement Act of 2014".

"Section 3-1-40.
There is exempt from ad valorem taxation any real
property, and improvements thereon, located within a military
base or installation that is used or owned by the United States
Armed Forces and is used as military housing for military
affiliated personnel and their families. Military housing
includes ancillary facilities that support the military housing.
This exemption continues to apply if the real property is
improved, maintained, or leased to a party that would otherwise
subject the real property to tax, so long as there is a
contractual agreement by and between a branch of the United
States Armed Forces and the lessee which requires the lessee to
use the property for military housing."

B. This SECTION takes effect upon approval
by the Governor and applies for property tax years beginning
after 2013.

SECTION 3. SECTION 2 of
Act 133 of 2014 is amended to read:

"SECTION 2.
This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor
and applies for property tax years beginning after
20132012."

PART III

Employment

SECTION 4. Section
1-13-80(I) of the 1976 Code is amended by adding an
appropriately numbered item at the end to read:

"( ) It is not an
unlawful employment practice for a private employer to give
preference in employment to a veteran. This preference is also
extended to the veteran's spouse if the veteran has a
service-connected permanent and total disability. A private
employer who gives a preference in employment provided by this
item does not violate any other provision of this chapter by
virtue of giving the preference. For purposes of this item,
'veteran' has the same meaning as provided in Section
25-11-40."

PART IV

Medicaid Waiver Protections

SECTION 5. Article 1,
Chapter 6, Title 44 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"Section 44-6-35.
In administering home and community-based waiver programs,
the department shall, to the extent possible, maintain the
waiver status of an eligible family member of a member of the
armed services who maintains his South Carolina state residence,
regardless of where the service member is stationed.
Consequently, a person on a waiver waiting list would return to
the same place on the waiting list when the family returns to
South Carolina. Furthermore, the eligible family member
previously enrolled in a waiver program and who received active
services would be reinstated into the waiver program once
Medicaid eligibility is established, upon their return to South
Carolina. It is not the intent of this section to authorize
services provided outside the South Carolina Medicaid Service
Area. These provisions are contingent upon the department
receiving federal approval."

PART V

Military-Connected Children's Welfare Task
Force

SECTION 6. Chapter 11,
Title 63 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"Article 21

Military-Connected Children's Welfare Task
Force

Section 63-11-2110. (A)
There is created the 'Military-Connected
Children's Welfare Task Force' for the purpose of identifying
issues related to military-connected children and opening
communication between child welfare agencies of this State and
local military installations. The task force shall study issues
relating to military-connected children as the task force may
undertake or as may be requested by the General Assembly.
(B) The task force is
to be comprised of the following members:
(1)
the Director of the Department of Health and Human
Services, or his designee;
(2)
the Governor, or his designee;
(3)
the Speaker of the House of Representatives, or his
designee;
(4)
the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, or his designee;
and
(5)
a representative of the Children's Trust Fund.
(C) The task force
shall meet as soon as practicable after the effective date of
this act for organizational purposes.
(D) The task force
shall submit an annual written report to the General Assembly
including recommendations to facilitate and open communication
between child welfare agencies of this State and local military
installations. The findings and recommendations of the task
force shall be posted on the Department of Health and Human
Services' website.
(E) The members of the
task force shall serve without compensation and may not receive
mileage or per diem."

PART VI

Veterans Treatment Court Program

SECTION 7. Title 14 of
the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"CHAPTER 29

Veterans Treatment Court Program

Section 14-29-10. This
Chapter may be cited as the 'Veterans Treatment Court Program
Act'.

Section 14-29-20. The
General Assembly recognizes the success of various other states'
veterans court initiatives in rehabilitating certain nonviolent
offenders who are veterans of a military conflict in which the
United States military is or has been involved. The purpose of
this chapter is to divert qualifying nonviolent military veteran
offenders away from the criminal justice system and into
appropriate treatment programs, thereby reserving prison space
for violent criminals and others for whom incarceration is the
only reasonable alternative. This chapter intends to set
standards and procedures to facilitate the creation and
continuation of these programs across the State, while leaving
local jurisdictions the flexibility to tailor individual
programs to local needs.

Section 14-29-30. Each
circuit solicitor may establish a veterans treatment court
program subject to the availability of funds. Each circuit
solicitor that accepts state funding for the implementation of a
veterans treatment court program must establish and administer
at least one veterans treatment court program for the circuit
within one hundred eighty days of receipt of funding. The
circuit solicitor must administer the program and ensure that
all eligible persons are permitted to apply for admission to the
program.

Section 14-29-40. (A)
The Chief Justice shall appoint judges of
the veterans treatment court upon the recommendation of the
circuit solicitor for that judicial circuit.
(B) A veterans
treatment court judge must:
(1)
be a member in good standing with the South Carolina Bar
or a member, active or retired, of the Unified Judicial
System;
(2)
serve at the pleasure of the Chief Justice for a term of
two years and may be reappointed;
(3)
receive no salary for his service as a veterans treatment
court judge and must serve as a veterans treatment court judge
on a voluntary basis;
(4)
receive an allowance for mileage, subsistence, and per
diem paid by the solicitor's office when engaged in the exercise
of duties as a veterans treatment court judge;
(5)
be exempt during his term from Rule 608, South Carolina
Appellate Court Rules, relating to the appointment of lawyers
for indigents;
(6)
enjoy in a veterans treatment court proceeding or action
the same privileges, immunities, and protections from civil
liability as a circuit court judge;
(7)
receive training provided for this service through
organizations which offer this type of training as determined by
the solicitor's office; and
(8)
reside in the judicial circuit where he serves.
(C) A veterans
treatment court judge shall preside subject to the Code of
Judicial Conduct with the goal of instilling discipline,
promoting rehabilitation, and encouraging participants'
successful completion of the veterans treatment court program.
A veterans treatment court judge has the authority of a circuit
court judge acting in probation matters, including, among other
things, the authority to:
(1)
maintain order and decorum in all proceedings, including
use of the contempt power;
(2)
issue an order of acceptance of a participant in the
program and an order of dismissal from the program;
(3)
impose by written order a sanction dismissing a
participant from the veterans treatment court program or
incarcerating him for failing to meet a condition, requirement,
or goal ordered by the veterans treatment court;
(4)
issue to a participant a certificate indicating his
successful completion of the veterans treatment court
program;
(5)
order conditions or requirements of a rehabilitation plan
for a participant, developed after consultation with the circuit
solicitor, a certified or licensed drug and alcohol counselor, a
veterans affairs counselor, or other professionals the veterans
treatment court judge considers beneficial, with the conditions
and requirements to include school, education, vocational
training, work, drug or alcohol testing, counseling, reporting,
treatment, curfew, monitoring, restitution, community service,
anger management, or other measures the judge considers
appropriate; and
(6)
take action he considers necessary to carry out the
veterans treatment court's functions provided in this chapter.

Section 14-29-50. (A)
A person seeking admission to the veterans
treatment court program:
(1)
must execute a veterans treatment court agreement
specified in this chapter;
(2)
must receive approval of the circuit solicitor;
(3)
may not have been previously admitted to a veterans
treatment court program;
(4)
may have no prior conviction or pending charges for:
(a)
a violent crime as defined in Section 16-1-60;
(b)
an offense for which the offender was placed on the sex
offender registry pursuant to Section 23-3-430;
(c)
the offense of lynching in the first degree pursuant to
Section 16-3-210 or lynching in the second degree pursuant to
Section 16-3-220;
(d)
the common law offense of assault and battery of a high
and aggravated nature;
(e)
the offense of carjacking pursuant to Section
16-3-1075;
(f)
the offense of harassment or stalking pursuant to Article
17, Chapter 3, Title 16; or
(g)
the offense of causing great bodily injury or death by
operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs or
alcohol pursuant to Section 56-5-2945; and
(5)
must have an active sentence of thirty days or more for a
nonviolent crime not exempted pursuant to item (4).
(B) A veterans
treatment court agreement required in subsection (A) may serve
as the offender's application for admission to a veterans
treatment court program and jurisdiction, and shall include:
(1)
sufficient proof that the offender is a veteran or current
member of the United States Armed Forces, including the Reserves
or National Guard;
(2)
sufficient proof that the offender suffers from a brain
injury, mental illness, or mental disorder, including
post-traumatic stress disorder;
(3)
an acknowledgement by the offender that his application is
voluntary and freely entered into;
(4)
an agreement that, if accepted, he will comply with all
conditions, rules and requirements imposed upon him in the
veterans treatment court program, including a rehabilitation
plan;
(5)
an acknowledgement that, if accepted, he may be dismissed
from the program at the discretion of the veterans treatment
court judge and consequently transferred to the circuit court
for commencement of his entire original sentence, without
reduction;
(6)
an acknowledgement and agreement that he has no right to
appeal or enjoin a decision of the veterans treatment court
judge;
(7)
an acknowledgement and agreement that the post-conviction
relief procedures do not apply to the veterans treatment court
program, and a relinquishment of all rights to post-conviction
relief;
(8)
an agreement to cooperate fully with those involved in his
rehabilitation plan and to comply with the requirements and
conditions of the plan, including the submission to analysis,
testing, treatment, counseling, evaluation, and providing
complete personal, health, and family information, and executing
releases to accomplish the provision of this information;
(9)
an agreement to bear, subject to his ability to pay, the
costs of analysis, testing, treatment, counseling, or evaluation
in a rehabilitation plan prescribed in the program, and an
agreement that funds paid by the participant or on his behalf
during the course of the veterans treatment court program may
not be refundable in any event, including his dismissal from the
program;
(10)
a general explanation of the purpose and concept of the
veterans treatment court program;
(11)
a statement of the offender's knowing, willing, and full
consent and submission to the authority of the veterans
treatment court and its process;
(12)
the signature of the offender and, if any, his counsel;
and
(13)
other statements, acknowledgements, or agreements the
circuit solicitor may consider appropriate.
(C) In determining
whether to accept an offender for admission to the veterans
treatment court program, the circuit solicitor shall consider,
among other things:
(1)
the veterans treatment court agreement presented by the
offender;
(2)
the nature of the offense for which the offender was
convicted in circuit court;
(3)
the offender's prior criminal history;
(4)
the offender's prior substance abuse history;
(5)
the likelihood that the offender successfully will
complete the program;
(6)
the risk and danger posed to the community by the
offender's remaining at large;
(7)
the benefits likely resulting to the community and this
State from the offender's acceptance into the program, including
cost savings, public service or private employment, enhancement
of the offender's ability to pay restitution, support or comfort
of his family, and the decreased likelihood of future criminal
activity;
(8)
the benefits likely resulting to the offender upon his
being accepted into the program, including drug or alcohol
rehabilitation, education, training, family support, discipline,
employment, physical and mental health, and the opportunity for
a productive life;
(9)
a positive recommendation or statement from the victim,
the victim's family, law enforcement, or the community, the
recommendation after screening by a qualified person selected by
the solicitor or provided by a state, county, or municipal
agency to determine the mental health or drug or alcohol
dependence of the applicant and his likelihood of successful
completion of a rehabilitation plan prescribed in this program;
(10)
the risk and danger posed to the victim or victim's family
by the offender remaining at large; and
(11)
other circumstances or matters the veterans treatment
court judge may consider appropriate.
(D) The veterans
treatment court's acceptance of the offender as a participant
must be presented to the circuit court. The circuit court, in
its discretion, may order the transfer of the offender to the
custody and jurisdiction of the veterans treatment court for
commencement of the veterans treatment court program. The
circuit court shall provide in its order that the participant
must be returned to the circuit court for final disposition, as
provided in this chapter, upon his successful completion of the
program or his dismissal from the program.
(E) Notice must be
provided to all victims pursuant to the Victims' Bill of Rights.

Section 14-29-60. (A)
When establishing a veterans treatment court
program, the circuit solicitor:
(1)
may address the particular requirements and circumstances
of the circuit. The procedure is subject to and consistent with
the uniform procedures provided in this chapter, including:
(a)
a veterans treatment court program must be at least twelve
months in duration but no more than eighteen months in duration
for a participant, although the program may be extended for a
maximum of six additional months by the veterans treatment
court;
(b)
a veterans treatment court session must be held in a
courtroom assigned by the appropriate court official or another
place the veterans treatment court judge considers appropriate
and where proper decorum, safety, and efficiency must be
maintained;
(c)
a veterans treatment court session must be held at a time
and place that will promote the maximum convenience and
attendance of associated parties, especially a participating
offender and his family, and, absent an agreement to the
contrary, should be held on a weekday and commencing no earlier
than 5:30 p.m.; and
(d)
a veterans treatment court program may require the
presence of a person necessary for the efficient operation of a
veterans treatment court session;
(2)
shall designate in his office a person to serve as his
veterans treatment court administrator to supervise and
coordinate the implementation of the program. These duties
shall include the scheduling of the hearings, notification of
the persons involved, maintenance and safeguarding of all
records and orders associated with the program, filing of all
orders and other appropriate documents with the appropriate
clerk of court, and the production of a report required by this
chapter; and
(3)
through his designated administrator, shall supervise and
coordinate the selection of counselors or other professionals to
analyze, test, treat, and evaluate an applicant or participant
contemplated in this chapter, and at least annually shall report
to the South Carolina Commission on Prosecution Coordination
information regarding funds expended by the circuit solicitor
for these purposes.
(B) The South Carolina
Commission on Prosecution Coordination shall assist the circuit
solicitor and veterans treatment court in establishing a uniform
system of procedures, statistics, and processes as set forth in
this chapter, collecting reports it prescribes from the circuit
administrator in order to measure the progress and operations of
the veterans treatment courts, and annually issuing a
comprehensive report of its findings and recommendations no
later than sixty days following the end of the fiscal year.
(C) The Supreme Court
may propose and adopt rules for the veterans treatment court
program in the same manner as it proposes and promulgates rules
for other courts in the Unified Judicial System.

Section 14-29-70. (A)
The transfer of an offender from the custody
and jurisdiction of the circuit court to custody and
jurisdiction of the veterans treatment court must be made by
issue of a written order from the circuit court in response to
the approval of the application by the veterans treatment court.
This order must provide for the deferment of the offender's
sentence pending the conclusion of the veterans treatment court
program. The veterans treatment court then shall control and be
responsible for the custody of the offender upon entry of the
circuit court's order.
(B) Where a person
fails successfully to complete the program and is consequently
dismissed from the program, the veterans treatment court must
transfer custody of the person to the circuit court for the
imposition of the sentence. A court may not reduce a sentence
for time spent participating in a veterans treatment court
program and other conditions of the sentence.
(C) The constitutional
notice requirements of the Victims' Bill of Rights apply to a
transfer, completion, or failure pursuant to this section.

Section 14-29-80.
Nothing contained in this chapter affects the operation or
establishment of juvenile drug courts in South Carolina.

Section 14-29-90. The
General Assembly shall appropriate funds annually to an account
to be maintained by the Commission on Prosecution Coordination
for the payment of mileage, subsistence, and per diem for
veterans treatment court judges as provided by this
chapter."

PART VII

Education

SECTION 8. Section
59-18-900 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 282 of 2008,
is further amended by adding an appropriately lettered
subsection at the end to read:

"( ) The
Education Oversight Committee, working with the State Board of
Education, is directed to establish a comprehensive annual
report concerning the performance of military-connected children
who attend primary, elementary, middle, and high schools in this
State. The comprehensive annual report must be in a
reader-friendly format, using graphics whenever possible,
published on the state, district, and school website, and, upon
request, printed by the school districts. The annual
comprehensive report must address at least attendance, academic
performance in reading, math, and science, and graduation rates
of military-connected children."

SECTION 9. A.
Section 59-112-50 of the 1976
Code, as last amended by Act 133 of 2012, is further amended to
read:

"Section 59-112-50.
(A) Notwithstanding another provision
of law, during the period of their assignment to duty in South
Carolina, members of the Armed Services of the United States
stationed in South Carolina and their dependents are eligible
for in-state tuition rates. When these armed service personnel
are ordered away from the State, their dependents are eligible
for in-state tuition rates as long as they remain continuously
enrolled at the state institution in which they are enrolled at
the time the assignment ends or transfer to an eligible
institution during the term or semester, excluding summer terms,
immediately following their enrollment at the previous
institution. In the event of a transfer, the receiving
institution shall verify the decision made by the student's
previous institution in order to certify the student's
eligibility for in-state tuition rates. It is the responsibility
of the transferring student to ensure that all documents
required to verify both the previous and present residency
decisions are provided to the institution. These persons
and their dependents are eligible for in-state tuition rates
after their discharge from the armed services even though they
were not enrolled at a state institution at the time of their
discharge, if they have evidenced an intent to establish
domicile in South Carolina and if they have resided in South
Carolina for a period of at least twelve months immediately
preceding their discharge.(B)(1) Active
duty military personnel may be charged less than the
undergraduate tuition rate for South Carolina residents for
courses that are presented on a distance basis, regardless of
residency.
(B2)
For purposes of this section, 'active duty military
personnel' includes, but is not limited to, active duty
guardsmen and active duty reservists.(C)Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a veteran
of the Armed Services of the United States, who has evidenced
intent to establish domicile in South Carolina, and their
dependents, are entitled to receive in-state tuition and fees at
state institutions without the requirement of one year of
physical presence in this State. For purposes of this
subsection, a 'veteran' is defined as an individual who has
served on active duty in the United States Armed Forces and who
has been honorably discharged from service."

B. The provisions of
this SECTION take effect July 1, 2014.

SECTION 10. Section
7-15-320 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 43 of 2011, is
further amended to read:

"Section 7-15-320.
(A) A qualified
electorQualified electors in any of the
following categories must be permitted to vote by absentee
ballot in all elections when he isthey
are absent from histheir county of
residence on election day during the hours the polls are open,
to an extent that it prevents himthem
from voting in person:
(1)
students, their spouses, and dependents residing with
them;
(2)
members of the Armed Forces and Merchant Marines
of the United States, their spouses, and dependents residing
with them;(3) persons serving
with the American Red Cross or with the United Service
Organizations (USO) who are attached to and serving with the
Armed Forces of the United States, their spouses, and dependents
residing with them;
(43)
governmental employees, their spouses, and dependents
residing with them;
(54) persons
on vacation (who by virtue of vacation plans will be absent from
their county of residence on election day); or
(65) overseas
citizens.
(B) A qualified
electorQualified electors in any of the
following categories must be permitted to vote by absentee
ballot in all elections, whether or not he isthey are absent from histheir
county of residence on election day:
(1)
physically disabled persons;
(2)
persons whose employment obligations require that they be
at their place of employment during the hours that the polls are
open and present written certification of that obligation to the
county registration board;
(3)
certified poll watchers, poll managers, county voter
registration board members and staff, county and state election
commission members and staff working on election day;
(4)
persons attending sick or physically disabled persons;
(5)
persons admitted to hospitals as emergency patients on the
day of an election or within a four-day period before the
election;
(6)
persons with a death or funeral in the family within a
three-day period before the election;
(7)
persons who will be serving as jurors in a state or
federal court on election day;
(8)
persons sixty-five years of age or older;
or
(9)
persons confined to a jail or pretrial facility pending
disposition of arrest or trial; or(10)members of the Armed Forces and Merchant Marines
of the United States, their spouses, and dependents residing
with them."

PART VIII

Severability and Effective Date

SECTION 11. If any
section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, sentence, clause,
phrase, or word of this act is for any reason held to be
unconstitutional or invalid, such holding shall not affect the
constitutionality or validity of the remaining portions of this
act, the General Assembly hereby declaring that it would have
passed this act, and each and every section, subsection,
paragraph, subparagraph, sentence, clause, phrase, and word
thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more other
sections, subsections, paragraphs, subparagraphs, sentences,
clauses, phrases, or words hereof may be declared to be
unconstitutional, invalid, or otherwise ineffective.